It looks like the Rightwing may have found a replacement for the American Center for Voting Rights (ACVR), the GOP front group set up to smokescreen against true election reform and transparent democracy. The ACVR has been mighty quiet of late, which we might like to attribute to their having been thoroughly discredited and rendered mostly impotent due to some longterm, airtight, crack reporting here by The BRAD BLOG about their attempted democracy-hating scam.

But now, a West Coast "non-partisan" conservative think-tank called Pacific Research Institute for Public Policy (PRI) may be stepping in to fill at least part of the void in the person of TechNews World columnist and PRI Director of Technology Studies, Sonia Arrison. Arrison has been op/ed'ing and releasing "white papers" lately rallying against voter-verified paper ballots for electronic voting machines. Her reasons for being against transparent democracy are both bizarre and seem freshly pulled out of her hind quarters (or out of those of Diebold's).

We'll look at some of her already-discredited charges in a moment, but let's take a look at this PRI group. Their staff seems to be a who's-who of Canadians, staffers of former-California Governor Pete Wilson, former staffers of Tom DeLay ally Rep. Richard Pombo (R-CA), and other "conservative" "thinkers".

PRI seems to be little more than yet another dirty dot in the massive now-metastasized matrix of "conservative" think-tanks, phony trade-associations, lobbying firms, consultants, columnists, politicians, "reporters" and other media pimps who are part of a wickedly tentacled network of people and organizations meant to prop up wingnut causes in the press while firing up the unquestioning, lockstep "grass-roots" believers...

You can take a gander at just part of the intricate, interlocking network of connections in this map created by RAW STORY's Larisa Alexandrovna compiled as she was covering the ACVR and their relationship to the phony Baker-Carter "Election Reform" commission.

According to ExxonSecrets, PRI was the recipient of $275,000, between 1998 and 2004, from ExxonMobile because of their work against the Kyoto Treaty.

As well, Vicki Perry reports that PRI "has links to the Cato Institute, American Enteprise Institute and is funded by --- among others --- big tobacco." Perry concludes that Arrison's "world view" (she has been lauded on-air by Limbaugh), now seems to be that we "need surveillance cameras on all the time and don't need paper ballots."

So who might now be paying the PRI bill for their latest crusade against verifiable transparent elections? We don't yet know, but we can take a few guesses from amongst the usual suspects. The PRI website says they are "a non-partisan, non-profit educational charity...Its contributors consist primarily of foundations and individuals, with some corporate support." Sounds all too familiar.

In "Paper trail law for e-voting has fans, foes" John Wildermuth of the San Francisco Chronicle reports that PRI's Arrison, believes the call for voter-verified paper ballots and mandatory audits to count them is one of "California's Top Ten Policy Blunders of 2005." The reason? It will make voting "increasingly difficult and negate the original virtues of e-voting: speed, cost-savings and efficiency."

In other words it doesn't matter if the machines count the votes accurately, as long as they are cheap to operate and fast. Of course, Arrison and PRI ignore all of the studies that prove touch-screen voting machines are much more expensive to purchase and operate than verifiable optical-scan voting systems and other balloting methods.

In her recent "White Paper" on voting technology, Arrison attempts to sell the fallacious premise by suggesting that, "Passing sweeping laws ... to require voter-verified paper trails for touch-screen machines, though well-intentioned, could bankrupt cash-strapped counties and may erode the efficiency of electronic voting management…"

We may be able to reach an agreement with Arrison here, except instead of getting rid of the "voter-verified paper trail," let's go a little further and save a lot more money by getting rid of the touch-screen machines all together! Other, more reliable and less-expensive systems will do very well, thank you.

(On a side note, did Arrison rally nearly as hard against the budget-busting, privacy-invading "sweeping law" requiring Real ID across the nation as tacked onto a recent Iraq War funding bill by Wisconsin's Rep. James Sensenbrenner? See this AP article for information on the unfunded Federal mandate that has states now in a panic about the law which really could bankrupt many of them!)

Arrison has even gone to battle with transparent election champion, California State Senator, Debra Bowen in the pages of TechNews where she said:

In California and other states, the march to make e-voting machines perfect using legislative dictates is in vogue. For instance, even after California passed a law to force all e-voting machines to have a voter-verified paper audit trail, state Senator Debra Bowen introduced yet more legislation for paper. At this rate, one might expect to find a paper-covered computer in the voting booth.

Bowen's legislation increased the state's commitment to slow, old and inefficient paper voting methods by specifying that "manual recounts of votes" requires that "the paper record copies or the voter verified paper audit trail of the electronically recorded vote are counted manually." In a press release on this issue, she echoed worn out anti-property rhetoric that will ring strange to freedom-loving Californians considering her run for Secretary of State.

Bowen argues that California shouldn't rely on proprietary software to count ballots. "If we want to ensure we have voting systems that are reliable and secure --- and that voters have confidence in --- we need to be moving toward an open source software structure," she says. This argument is a red herring, probably designed to distance her from current Secretary of State Bruce McPherson.

In response to freedom-hating Arrinson's worn out anti-democratic rhetoric, Bowen issued a reply recently in a press release which responds to PRI's propaganda:

"It takes the term ‘tone deaf' to a whole new level,” said Senator Debra Bowen (D-Redondo Beach), the chairwoman of the Senate Elections, Reapportionment & Constitutional Amendments Committee. “Given the scandals involving electronic voting machines and the rising number of California voters who are losing faith in the system, how anyone can come out and say with a straight face, ‘Let's trust the voting machine vendors, they know what they're doing' is beyond me."

For her part, Bowen is holding hearings next week in Sacramento on California's implementation of HAVA so far (public invited!). As well, she's announced hearings later in February or March on "Open Source" voting issues.

No doubt, we can expect more pre-paid propaganda in the future out of the Tower of Babble from which the likes of Arrison and her ilk slither. These guys are not likely to give up their fight easily as those of us who actually do give a damn about transparent democracy make more and more headway. Their playing field grows increasingly diminished in direct correlation to the American public becoming ever more educated about what's really at stake. The "bad guys" don't care for that, and will, of course, keep releasing misinformation out of their paid-for-play phony institutions in the bargain wherever they can.

Unfortunately, their side keeps the money flowing freely to prop up their nonsense, while our side is comprised mostly of true grass-roots citizens in the fight simply because it's the right thing to do. We've learned, sadly, there's not a lot of money in that particular market. So for now, to paraphrase someone we recently spoke with who had their tongue only partly in cheek, we'll have to take comfort in the idea that "Democracy itself will have to be its own reward."

Mine eyes have seen the glory of the burning of the school!
We have tortured every teacher we have broken every rule!
We've been sent to the principal's office over a hundred and one times!
Our butts are getting sore!
Glory glory halleluyah!
Teacher hit me with a ruler!
Met her at the door with a loaded forty-four!
Our teacher taught no more!

This is just unbelievable!!!! They are like a fully automated propaganda-machine on steroids, spreading false rumors about paper trails everywhere.

Well I can say Bev Harris is correct, this is a well oiled machine. Pacific Research Institute happens to be driving the bus, it seems...

Also I have heard Bob Ney intends to resign before he's indicted...What I wouldn't give to be in the interrogation room. Here is what I found on the 'Jeff Fisher' story for Catherine or anyone wanting to know...

Regarding the Jeff Fisher story about election hacking, I got an interesting response from someone I trust:

"If is true it is a little heavy
handed on the part of officials. Can not help much with knowing if any of the info has validity.

When I met him he was in the company of a lady named Jennifer (Last
name unknown but she seemed to be well known by everyone in the room). She might be able to help.

Clint"

Anyone here ever heard of Jennifer before? The search for the truth continues...

We've been making a really strong effort to give credit to people who do original research, and along those lines, I'd like to add here that the original research on Pacific Research Insititute was in the Black Box Voting consultation forum, and was provided by Pat Vesely, Christopher Hooten, Catherine Ansbro and John Howard.

When I posted a query suggesting we put the writing of Sonia Arrison in context at 6 a.m. Jan. 6, Pat Vesely and Christopher Hooten were quick and thorough, identifying other articles she's written, and uncovering the people behind Pacific Research Institute. By late afternoon they were digging away at the faux-publishing houses that sponsor the propaganda, and had quite a bit published about TCS.

Then you guys picked up on it, and developed more on the background of this kind of thing, and brought it into more prominence and developed the story much further.

Thanks so much for seeing the relevance of the work launched by Vesely, Hooten, Ansbro and Howard. Here is the link to their research as it was developing:

Yeah, Bluebear2,
Brad already had the link above, but it was so small it needed to be brought up again so people would notice it
As I followed more and more links on sourcewatch, these money grubbing STINKTANKS have been filling in every nook and cranny of our Democracy ever since AEI was founded in the early 70's

They're "chipping away" at the blue states. Is this because they have a Republican governor and secretary of state, and they're trying to make hay while the sun is shining? Did Ca. citizens know what they were getting, when they put the Terminator in there? He's "terminating" their voting rights!

I wonder why none of us have found out an alternative voting machine company that actaually has the interests of American rights in mind. We all hate diebold and the other company but where is the alternative. Perhaps we should have an alternative company for counties to pick from. Where the source code is revealed before and after and there is a paper trail. Just an idea

Comment #6: U got to think when the founding fathers came up with our government that they were..proud because it ultimately could curb abuses and corruption by the system of check and balance with the American people keeping a watchful eye on the decisions of their mainly elected and appointed officials. This is why the snow job is so effective. Control the information, mislead and uninform the people while cutting closed door deals to forward the agenda (today it's the Bushit administration). Coverup and damage control can be minimized by controlling the mass media and flooding the news New Orleans style with outright lies and deception. If we don't break this system and expose these treasonous bastards than we will not be able to reclaim our American form of government. To all the reals working on this story: you men and women are doing a great service for your country and i'm so proud of you.
Cheers!

Brad, the ACVR hasn't gone underground here in Pennsylvania. Just this past week there was a letter to the editor in the Philadelphia Inquirer by that douchebag Mark "Thor" Hearne(I hope I don't get prosecuted for trying to "annoy" him anonymously on a message board). Unfortunately I was so angered by it that I couldn't write a letter that didn't include sexual insults involving anuses. Don't be like me people, meditate or something so you can have the wherewithal to control yer anger. :hehe:

One would think that the majority of the 2000 and 2004 voters would be rising up in mass demanding drastic changes in the current tamper prone electronic voting machines by replacing them with systems that offer dependable paper trails. Systems that would ensure the upcoming midterm November elections are conducted in a fair and responsible manner. Unless swift decisive changes are forthcoming in all fifty states, I am afraid we are all doomed to the same voting irregularities and thefts that occurred in the past. This major problem should be the absolute top priority for consideration by all our elected congressional representatives. Unfortunately, more than likely, those in power will go along with the status quo while the opposition, unless jolted back to some semblance of reality, will forgo the opportunity to make these changes happen. My views could be categorized as pessimistic, however, at the moment, I harbor a great fear for our cherished democracy!

Clint Curtis has told me this story sounds credible, do you have any more proof of this software "BIOS"?

If its called dynamically linked interpreter code we already found it....its inside every damn Diebold DRE and Optical Scan. Its also inside ES&S iVotronic and all the Sequoia DRE and Optical Scan.....

If this is the case, I would like to hear who this Jennifer is? Do you know a Jennifer, what is her last name?

thank you! and thanks to BradBlog for covering the story, and to BBV people for doing the deep digging on TechCentralStation. (link above in Bev's post)

I think what set off the PRI person was my reference to open source software. She casts it as "anti-property rights" because no one can own the copyright or keep it a secret.

There's plenty of debate about open source versus propietary software, but we are talking about our elections here, not our bank software.

Of course, since my first Diebold hearing, I'm having a little trouble using ATM's. The very day of the hearing, I went to use my normal ATM in the Capitol basement. The machine took my card normally, then started whirring and making strange grinding noises. Without a pause in the noise-maker machinery, it presented me with a screen asking if I'd like another transaction, but no cash, and no ATM card back.

Um, gee, Diebold, can I finish the transaction I've started (or at least I think I started) before I begin the next one? Eventually I resorted to a few good whacks on the machine and it coughed up some lovely twenty dollar bills. I declined further experimentation at that time.

Last week a Diebold machine at the airport couldn't manage to do anything with my card. So I'm 0 for 2 at Diebold ATM's right now. Perhaps I've been demagnetized, or ...?

Anyway, there goes the argument that we do all our financial transactions electronically and there are never any problems.

Gadzooks! The machines that try to act human, while attempting to destroy everything that gets in the way, really remind me of the "new and improved" Terminator, from T2. They just keep on hammering away, no obstacles have any ability to slow them down. Mindless freaks! These people scare me. I never did like Zombies.....